Ex-radio presenter Ismahalil jailed 30 years for drug trafficking

The Court of Appeal overturned Ismahalil Hamzah’s acquittal and sentenced him to 30 years in prison for a cannabis trafficking offence.

PUTRAJAYA: Former radio presenter Ismahalil Hamzah was sentenced to 30 years’ jail by the Court of Appeal here today on a charge of trafficking cannabis five years ago.

The decision was made by a three-judge panel chaired by Datuk Noorin Badaruddin, together with Datuk Mohd Radzi Abdul Hamid and Datuk Meor Hashimi Abdul Hamid, after allowing the prosecution’s appeal against the High Court decision that had previously acquitted Ismahalil, 53.

The panel convicted Ismahalil under Section 39B(1) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 and sentenced him under Section 39B(2) of the same Act, ordering him to serve the prison sentence starting today.

Justice Mohd Radzi, when reading out the judgment, said the trial judge who acquitted Ismahalil in July last year had misdirected himself in evaluating the facts and the law, thereby warranting the Court of Appeal’s intervention.

He said the trial judge failed to properly evaluate the evidence showing that only Ismahalil had access to the room where the drugs were found, even though his wife testified that others also had access to the area.

“The totality of the evidence proves that the accused had knowledge, custody and control over the drugs. Therefore, we allow the prosecution’s appeal and set aside the High Court judge’s previous decision,” he said.

Earlier, lawyer Hermes Media Putra Ibrahim, representing Ismahalil, appealed for a lenient sentence on the grounds that his client is the main breadwinner of the family.

However, Deputy Public Prosecutor Afzainizam Abdul Aziz urged the court to consider a prison sentence under Section 39B(2) of the same Act, taking into account the accused’s age of over 50 years and that he would not be subjected to whipping.

On July 17, 2023, the Kuala Lumpur High Court acquitted and discharged Ismahalil from the charge of trafficking cannabis after finding that the defence had proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt at the end of the defence case.

Ismahalil was charged with trafficking cannabis weighing 374.6 grammes at a house on Jalan Semarak, Wangsa Maju here, at 5.35 pm on Aug 27, 2021, under Section 39B(1)(A) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 and liable to punishment under Section 39B(2) of the same Act, which provides for the death penalty, if convicted.